Tarot Thrones | The Court Card Blog

Year: 2014

  • Heroes | Warriors |Worthies

    A long time ago,  I promised to show you the Court Cards from the Dame Fortune’s Tarot Wheel deck (by Paul Huson) because they are REALLY interesting: They are all named after well-known characters from classical literature and the Bible.

    I know.  CLASSICAL LITERATURE!!  THE BIBLE!!! Here on m’blog!!!!

    Before we meet those Court families, I thought that it made good sense to take a look at just why these cards bear the names that they do.

    *does the wobbly hands time thing*

    Back in the 1400s in France, it was the custom to pop names onto the face cards of the standard
    deck of playing cards. Two groups of names were common; one that
    became known as the Paris pattern and the other, the Rouen pattern.  These patterns, or lists of names,  have quite a bit of overlap and it is the Paris pattern that we are interested in today because this is the design that influenced early Tarot decks, such as Etteilla’s Tarot in the 1700s. And it is Etteilla’s deck that forms the basis for The Dame Fortune’s Tarot Wheel.
    The Paris Pattern

                       Hearts         Spades            Diamonds          Clubs
    Kings          Charles       David              Caesar                Alexander
    Queens       Judith         Pallas              Rachel                Argine
    Knaves       La Hire      Ogier               Hector          Judas
    Maccabeus *
                                                                                       Judah Maccabee

    Although we’re not talking about them today, here are the famous stars of the Rouen Pattern.

    The Rouen Pattern



                       Hearts          Spades    Diamonds    Clubs
    Kings         Alexander     David        Caesar          Charles
    Queens      Rachel           Pallas        Argine          Judith
    Knaves      La Hire          Hector      Ogier            Judah Maccabee **
                                                                                 Judas Maccabeus
                                                 

    Info from the International Playing Card Society website                                                                
    You will have noted, because I know that you are a clever and discriminating personage, that there is a Tarot rank missing – the Knights are not included in either the Paris or Rouen Patterns.  There’s nothing sinister about this, just that in ordinary playing card decks (where these patterns come from) there were only the three ranks of King, Queen and Knave.   We’ll be talking about this again when we get on to the Sola Busca Tarot in a week or so, because it’s contrary!  I know, it’s almost like I’ve PLANNED these posts.

    13th century ‘Nine Good Heroes’
    (City Hall, Cologne)

    It was also suggested to me that the Nine Worthies (Neuf Preux) play a role in the names selected for the Paris and Rouen patterns.

    These Worthies were famed rulers of the Christian, Jewish and Pagan worlds and were first mentioned in a chanson de geste (a type of epic poem), ‘Voeux du Paon’  (‘The Vows of the Peacock’) by Jaques de Longuyon around 1312 – all about chivalry.

    It seems likely that similar chivalric tales (which were all the rage) influenced the naming of the cards in both the Paris and Rouen patterns.  

    The Nine Worthies 

    Pagan         Hector, Alexander and Caesar
    Jewish        Joshua, David, Judas Maccabeus
    Christian    King Arthur, Godfrey of Bouillon,  Charlemagne
    I’ve highlighted the overlapping names in the Paris Pattern with the Worthies in red.

    * Edit:  Paul Huson very kindly commented on this blog post and provided the following correction:  “Judas Maccabeus was one of the Nine Worthies but his name was never attached to the Knave of Clubs. From 1490 the Knave in both Rouen and Paris patterns bore the name “Lancelot” (of Camelot fame) although the name “Roland,” another name from French legend, was briefly tried but didn’t last”. 

    In the late 1300s,  Lists of 9 Lady Worthies were created, but only Judith seems to be an overlapping name. However, the Lady Worthies seem to change depending on who is creating the list!
    So while the Worthies must have influenced the naming of many of the male characters in the Paris system for playing cards,  the sources of the Lady Worthies just seem to be sourced from the Bible (Judith and Rachel), Argine isn’t a name that I’ve managed to find as a heroine anywhere (but it means ‘dam’ or ‘bank’ in Italian) and Pallas will be referring to the Greek goddess, Pallas Athene.
    King Arthur and Lancelot need no introductions from me but some of the others might need a Big Up:  La Hire was a French military commander during the 100 Years War and comrade of Joan of Arc and although Ogier (The Dane) was one of Charlemagne’s Knights, he became more widely known as a subject of European literature.
    Anyway, now that we’ve cleared all that up, I hope that you’re all geared up to meet Dame Fortune’s Families……in Monday’s post!

  • Courts in Court | Crime Families | Corleones & Krays

    He’s going to make you an offer
    you can’t refuse……

    My good friend Viv had another stroke of genius the other day (to see previous strokes, and stitches, visit her blog!) and suggested that m’blog would be a great place to discuss the Courts and chat about their various criminal inclinations.

    And it’s an INSPIRED idea!

    So who do you think are our Corleones? our Sopranos? our Luccheses? our Krays?

    And let’s not forget those dastardly Partridges (for crimes against music, of course).

    Let’s set the mood…..

    Historically, of course, our cards HAVE been associated with various Italian families – none of whom were squeaky clean – the Sforzas, the Viscontis, the Estes to name but three.

    And let’s not forget that Mafia gangs are referred to as families!  In later posts (if you like the idea!) we will look at the individual capofamiglia (family head), the soto capo (underboss) the consigliere and the foot soldiers!

    From a contemporary point of view, being aware of our Court Families’ darker sides can only help us flesh out these characters – either to help us choose significators or to help deconstruct a personality type that arises in a reading.

    In this first post, I thought we could look at what sort of crimes would apply to the families generally:

    Wands are assertive, active and passionate 

    For me, this means that any crime involving violence would fall within the remit of a Wands crime – murder, attempted murder, assault, rape, mugging, physical abuse, torture, kidnapping……

    Swords are logical, communicative and largely brain-powered

    This makes them eminently suitable for fraud, deception, scams, cyber-crime, trolling, identity theft, counterfeiting, extortion, blackmail, revenge porn.  Although breaches of contract etc are not crimes, but civil matters, I’d have the Swords represent this sort of nastiness too.

    Cups are to do with love and relationship 

    The darker side of the Cups would mean that any crime against a family member or someone that you have a relationship with would bring in Cups energies.

    So crimes such as fratricide, matricide, patricide,  stalking (even if it’s a relationship in your head lol!) would count as Cups crimes.   I would count the ‘assisting’ part of assisted suicide as a Cups crime, although suicide isn’t treated as a crime any more (although up until 50 years ago in the UK it was)

    Pentacles is associated with home, wealth and health

    Any property crimes – vandalism, burglary, bank heists, fly tipping, etc would be Pentacles crimes. Also anything to do with getting cash – bank robberies, shop-lifting etc

    Of course, they will overlap and blend, but even if you can pin down a type of behaviour to two suits, it will help you talk about their darker sides:

    For example:

    – The violent burglary of a family member would tick the Wands, Pentacles and Cups boxes.

    When crimes are blended, which aspect would you prefer to focus on – the violence involved? the fact that it was from family? or the theft itself?

    Obviously, I lead a very sheltered life and the lists of crimes here don’t cover everything.  And your associations for the suits might be quite different – if you regard Wands as blustery and airy, then the attributes of the Swords families crimes would better suit your Wands famiglia 🙂

    Which crimes do I need to which family? Make your suggestions in the comments and I’ll add them in!

  • Full Moon in Aries | Queen of Wands | October 2014

    *claps hands* bring this woman a thermal vest!

    In October the silver light of the full moon falls on Aries, or as we know her Royal Highness here at Tarot Thrones, the Queen of Wands.

    Since this is also a lunar eclipse, that silver light will turn a dark and earthy red as the shadow from our own little rock falls across the face of the moon.

    Technically, the moon is full at a whisper off midday on the 8th of October, so celebrate it when you can!  If you live in Western North America, you lucky things get to see the full lunar eclipse Here in the UK, we’ll see nothing! PAH!

    Not only will this be a lunar eclipse, it will also be a SELENELION.  Which is NOTHING to do with sealions and everything to do with fancy-pants atmospheric conditions.

    You can read about it here.

    Anyhoo, to mark the lunar eclipse and the marvellousness of the Selenelion we witness the appearance of the Queen of Wands energy in our inner lives.  Here’s the Enchantress of Wands from the Tarot of Delphi, resplendent in her diaphanous red robe.  I think it may be time to send a Page down to the boiler room to instruct the ceremonial turning on of the central heating here at Thrones or she’s going to catch pneumonia…..

    So what is the Queen of Wands saying to us this Full Moon?


    The combination of Water (Queenly energy) and Fire (Wands energy) gives the Queen of Wands a tricky balancing act to cope with:  On one hand, the passion, fire and action that her Wands behaviour requires must not be drowned into ineffectuality and paralysis by her emotional nature.  On the other, she must make sure that her loving and caring watery side is not steam-rollered over by her enthusiastically assertive (and some might say aggressive) traits either.

    How does she do this?

    The Enchantress tells us that this is a fantastic time for getting active and fired-up about something that makes you feel quite emotional.  It’s time to take a stand!

    This might take the form of:

    volunteering to help at a local charity shop
    running a 10k in memory of someone that you love
    signing on-line petitions against animal cruelty
    March against social injustice

    Today is a good day to let your playful, sexy side have a bit more free reign – you can catch many more flies with sugar than you can with vinegar ;-D  And The Queen of Wands is an utterly irresistible charmer when she puts her mind to it!

    Considering the glyph for Aries, it maybe time to pluck those eyebrows?!  Unbutton one more blouse button? Sit with your knees apart and raise some, erm, eyebrows!

    *pssst* – put your hands up if you prefer the Queen of Wands to represent Leo? 

  • Tarot in Art | Queen of Pentacles | Visconti

    “Here, you take it, my arm’s getting tired!”

    On my frequent forays into the dusty art vaults at Tarot Thrones to bring you something lovely to see, I found this gem tacked on the floor behind the door behind an ancient pile of Radio Times magazines.

    This is the Queen of Pentacles, or ‘Reine de Deniers’ to give her her sale title, who was sold at Christies in Paris back in 2005.

    It is attributed to The Master of the Visconti Tarot (mid 15th century) and is gouache on board, with gilded highlights.

    Seated in front of a draped blue banner, we meet the red robed Queen.  She wears a golden crown to denote her rank and is depicted with her Coin held aloft in her right hand. Although she looks a bit pregnant, I suspect that is just the fashion of the frock.

    Just off to the left of the card we an see another figure who is either handing the Queen her Coin or receiving it from her.

    It’s a beautiful little image that measures 168mm x 63mm

    The card was estimated to sell at $33,549-$46,968

    It actually sold for $376, 817!

    Am I the only woman who wishes that Empire line frocks would come back into fashion so that we too can sit and let our tummies relax like the Queen of Pentacles.

    Also crowns.  I would like a crown……

  • Knights of Wands | Annoying little gaming dudes

    Forget the bare arms –
    pull on a sweater, woman!

    So, it was Sunday.  I am alone in the house.  I am luxuriating a la Queen of Pentacles mode on the sofa with the soundtrack from Gypsy playing discretely.  Well, as about discretely as you can have Miss Mazeppa and her bugle,  a pot of posh coffee on the go…..the Sunday newspapers….I was in heaven.

    Until.

    My son and his equally computer-mad friend arrive at the door, asking whether they could just have ‘an hour’ playing a game on line.

    Don’t ask me what it was.  They tell me that it’s building space-craft but there seems to be a LOT of shooting involved in building spacecraft the way they do it.

    Anyway, I acquiesced, determined to keep my Sunday Morning Pentacly Vibe going for as long as possible.

    And so I read the paper, ignoring the explosive noises coming from next door and supped at my coffee and let Ethel Merman do her lung-busting thang.

    And the house got colder.

    And colder…..

    And colder……

    Until it was colder than a nun’s, erm, HEART.

    I turned the radiator up the sitting room.  Nothing.  My heart sank – we only had a new boiler fitted in August. Surely it wasn’t on the blink already?

    It came with a fancy new wifi thing called Hive. Which is MAGIC.  When it works.  You can turn your central heating up or down or on or off from anywhere in the world.  But not from the living room radiator by the looks of things.

    I went into my son’s room and tapped the Hive unit anxiously.  No lights.  No nothing.  Surely that wasn’t right?

    ‘Have you done anything to this?’ I ask a small gaming Knight of Wands.

    ‘To what?’  his fingers dance over the keyboard, his gaze locked on the screen.  His face lit up in an eery blue light.

    ‘THIS’ I say, resisting the urge to smack him round the back of the head with the Hive hub.  The Queen of Pentacles’ relaxed, nurturing energy was spiralling down the plughole faster than the incoming Queen of Wands wrath was climbing up it….

    ‘Nope.  Not touched it.’

    I fiddle about with the settings at the back of the Hive hub and pull gently on the cable that runs to the wall socket.  It feels suspiciously NOT PLUGGED IN.

    I trace the path of the wire, crawling beneath the computer desk and emerge with the plug.  In my hand.  Not plugged in.

    ‘You’ve unplugged it!’ I bellow fearsomely.  This time I do give him an irritated smack – it ruffles his hair and his pride, but not much else.

    ‘Oh is THAT what that plug’s for?  oh right! Sorry! Yeah, I unplugged it.’  His fingers don’t miss a beat on the keyboard.  His small gaming friend won’t make eye-contact with me.  They are a couple of guilty puppies.

    I sigh and pick up the telephone to the helpline…

    And lo! dear reader,  it took about an hour of running from room to room with the phone clamped to my ear, taking batteries out of thermostats, switching off the boiler, switching it back on, moving booster plugs….until the heating went back online….. and I headed straight to the drink’s cabinet for a celebratory (and warming!) whisky and ginger ale.

    Well, it was 5 o’clock somewhere, right?

    Court insights:

    Knight of Wands behaviour – action without thinking.  Mindless gaming activity.
    Queen of Pentacles behaviour – luxury and self-care.  Includes restorative whisky.
    Queen of Wands behaviour – fast-rising wrath that is unabated by motherly love.  Or even chocolate.

    Enjoy the Gypsy toon 😀

  • Full Moon in Pisces | Knight of Cups

    In September, we celebrate the Full Moon in Pisces, or, as we prefer to refer to him here in Tarot Thrones Towers, The Knight of Cups.

    Alexander Daniloff Tarot

    The Moon, in Tarot, is associated with imagination, dreams, subconscious and illusions.  If there is one Knight who knows all about THAT stuff, it’s the Knight of Cups.

    The Knight of Cups is very much a Grail Knight to me, so expect to find yourself caught up in a new quest or challenge.  Yes, the Knight of Cups will have you all fired up and trotting off to fight for a cause – or at least taking part in the ice-bucket challenge.

    But, like the ice bucket challenge – you might be getting involved in something that you don’t really know a heck of a lot about.  Do your homework before you ride off into battle to make sure that you are not under any illusions about what you’re doing!

    The Knights represent polar opposites, so if he sees himself as a Righteous Warrior For The Cause it’s likely that other people will see him as something entirely different – at worst he’ll come across as an Evangelical Know It All (who really doesn’t know terribly much and who hasn’t got a huge amount of experience) and at best others will consider him a half-assed meddler, a romantic dilettante.

    As Air of Water, we do have a lot of fizz in our Knightly chalice but, like fizz, the bubbles won’t last terribly long, so if you spend too much time gazing at your cup, you’ll find that you never actually DO anything other than day dream.

    Air and Water can lead to quite a lot of turbulence – strong emotions, grand gestures…..but rooted in what kind of reality.  He’s in love with the idea of love, not the nappy-changing, smelly reality of it all.

    This is Petrarch and Laura – loads of adoring poetry, but not much in the way of an ACTUAL relationship.

    If you are planning any new project or job that requires imagination and creativity he’s very auspicious! However, don’t get caught up in just dreaming about what you’ll wear on the red carpet when you go to pick up your Best Actress Academy Award – you need to get your booty down to the community acting class first!

    Don’t be caught up in the dream, get out there on the Quest.  And when you’re out there on the Quest, when you spot the Grail don’t just sit in admiring silence – Go. For. It!

  • Blog Hop | Lammas | Queen of Pentacles

    Welcome to Tarot Thrones – where the best Tarot card is always a Court card!

    You may have hopped here from Joy’s site or from Mary’s site.  Or even just happened here by chance! It matters not a jot – you are very welcome!

    Previous | Next | Master List

    Our Tarot Blog hop wrangler, Joanna Ash from Sun Goddess Tarot set the Lammas challenge: write about the Queen of Pentacles.

    Since my blog is alllllll about the Tarot’s Court Cards, there was no WAY I was going to be left out of this particular round of the blog hop!

    The suit of Pentacles is associated with our physical world – our health, our homes and our wealth.

    We often only consider our health when it begins to fail, or when you realise that your Rubens-esque curves now resemble the sort of plush padding that you only find in a luxury car. Give or take the leather upholstery finish…..:-D

    Our homes, suggests Pentacles, can be sanctuaries, places of safety and retreat from the hassles of the outside world; a place to cosset, recharge and hunker-down. However, it need not be a place of bricks and mortar – your home is where your heart is, so think about ‘home’ widely! Could your ‘home’ be your spiritual practice,  perhaps?

    And wealth? Well of course it could be the actual coin itself – our savings, investments or assets. And those assets need not be the car, the house or your growing collection of Tom Hiddleston photos that lurk at the back of your knicker drawer *cough*. Your assets could be your family, your fabulous gal pals, your hard-won university degree or your ability to bake divine Custard slices. Custard slices. *eyes glaze over and drools*


    The Queen energy offers us an opportunity to care for, guard and nourish these three areas of our lives.

    So, here’s a little 3-card spread based on her energies:

    Queen of Pentacles Spread

    Card 1: How can I best care for my health?
    Card 2: How do I best nourish my home and family?
    Card 3: What can I do to guard my wealth?

    I drew three cards, from the Morgan Greer Tarot (in case you are getting a little bored with the Alexander Daniloff Tarot lol!), to find my own answers:

    How can I best care for my health?

    Work!


    Although I work from home, I miss being in a place of work outside of the home.  I miss the camaraderie and the laughs that come with being in a workplace. Sure, my days are very busy ‘in the office’ and I have lots of website clients and Tarot writing to do, but yanno, I’ve got to be honest and say that a lot of that busy time is on Facebook. Networking with similarly-minded people.  Or looking at cute pictures of cats.  Mostly the cats.

    Getting out of the house and back into a workplace will get me off my increasingly flat bottom.   I think that it would be good for my mental health and self-esteem to get back into that environment.

    And then there is the issue of biscuits.  And cup cakes.  And tray-bakes.  And Tunnocks Caramel Wafers.  Reader, I have put on a lot of weight since leaving the Office, thanks to my sweet tooth and my decision that walking to the kitchen for something to eat actually counted as exercise.  Having limited access to the sweet stuffs can only do me good!

    How do I best nourish my home and family?

    The most immediate feelings that I get from this are – if I look after my health, then it automatically has positive impact on my home and family situation.  Also, getting a bit of balance will be useful – anyone who works from home walks a tightrope between ‘work at home’ and ‘family time home’.  I often fall off that tightrope – my son once drew a picture of me and it was the back of my head while I sat at the computer.  That was a *lightbulb* moment!

    I also see that being outside, perhaps walking (path to mountains), perhaps in my garden (flag iris and water).  Paddling! Yeah, why not?! I need to get on with the garden and the growing of vegetables and flowers! Having a bit of fun outside! Step AWAY from Dogshaming.com!

    What can I do to guard my wealth?

    The first words that popped into my head were:  ‘Balance the Sailor!’ which is not as bonkers as it might sound.  There is a sailing ship in the background and my other half – the bread-winner – is in the merchant navy, so he’s technically a sailor.  Although he would rather die than wear a bell-bottom. And a hornpipe is something that he would probably try to smoke.

    I can never hope to balance his income with income of my own, I think this card is indicating a different sort of ‘wealth’ – our life together here. I can help balance the scales by becoming more active and in many parts of our life together where, at the moment, I just let him take the lead (or even tune out completely).  He’s an Aries. Sometimes it’s easier just to acquiesce, know what I mean? 😉

    Maybe learning to juggle my money will be a good thing too – I tend to open accounts and just leave the money in there for ever, regardless of the interest rate.  Maybe step up to that with enthusiasm and take responsibility for ensuring that my money doesn’t just stagnate?

    So, there you have it.  The Queen of Pentacles advises me to take a more active role in my ‘wealth’, to make a better balance between work and home – get gardening! get outdoors! Step AWAY from Facebook!  And maybe find regular ‘work’ outside of the home – perhaps volunteering in a charity shop might be a good place to start?

    Try the spread and let me know what you get!

    Now, either hop to the next blog, or hop back to the previous blog….or if the links are broken, hop over to Joanna’s Master List!

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  • Tarot in Art | Vanitas | Sebastien Bonnecroy

    St James of Morrison once said, ‘No one gets out of here alive,*’ and he was quite right, of course.  Since 17th century Dutch painters didn’t have The Doors as a reference point, they created Vanitas paintings – the purpose of which was to remind us, basically, that no one gets out of here alive.

    This particular painting, attributed to Flanders-based French artist Sebastien Bonnecroy, features the usuals suspects – a hollow-eyed skull (to remind us of our mortality) surrounded by temporary things – the cupboard decorated by a skeleton holding an hour glass, the candle that burns down, the pipe that breaks, the clock that ticks out the hours of our lives (I actually typed ‘cock’), and a whole load of other symbols that trumpet the painting’s purpose:  YOU ARE GOING TO DIE.

    Holding the thought that your end was looming at the end of any given sneeze… or pustulant boil, people would then gaze blearily upon their Vanitas paintings and rush out into the world to do good works and lead spiritual lives.  Also, infect people.

    In this particular oil painting,  nestled in the middle of the arrangement of symbols is a set of Tarot cards.  The inclusion of Tarot cards may show the fleeting pleasure of gaming, alongside the fleeting pleasure of music (as shown by the musical instruments)…or does it indicate that by the time this painting was produced, 1663-ish people WERE using Tarot for divination and the exploration of our fates?

    The painting was in auction at Christies in 2009 for an estimate of £10,000 – £15,000, but I’ll be danged if I can see what it actually DID sell for.

    What do you think – gaming or divination?!

    * Five To One, Waiting for the Sun (1968)

    Update – appears to have been sold for $58,941

  • Prince George | Queen of Cups | King of Wands

    You would need to be living beneath a rock not to realise that the Magnificently Coiffured Duchess of Cambridge and the slightly less magnificently styled Duke of Cambridge have had a BABY!!!! Yes, I know Prince George was born last July, but hey, I like to be UNPREDICTABLE and fashionably late to parties.

    Of course,  I’m very pleased that the Little Prince is here, healthy and breaking hearts all over the world – he did an outstanding job in Australia – but I’m more interested in him from a purely Tarot Court Card point of view.

     Tragic and worryingly obsessive, I know.

    Prince George Alexander Louis was born on 22 July 2013.  He’ll be celebrating his first birthday next week!

    He teeters on the energetic high-wire that is the cusp of Cancer and Leo.  Personally, I would have ‘gassed’ and ‘aired’ with my legs crossed until he could be born on the 23rd of July because all the best people are Leos  *nods sagely and looks forward to her own Leo birthday in August.  No pressure for presents. Much.*

    To be born on the cusp like this this makes our new Prince a Queen of Cups (Cancer) with powerful King of Wands (Leo) undertones.

    When people are born right on a cusp, I usually take this to mean that they will have the positive traits of the outgoing sign and the, erm, less attractive parts of the incoming sign.  Some people work it the other way around – take your pick and be consistent!

    For baby Boy George, this means he’ll have the positive traits of The Queen and the negative traits of The King contributing to his personality.

    The Queen of Cups is an emotional character whose focus is very much on relationships.  Strongly empathetic, I think that Prince George will share many of the qualities that his late grandmother (Can you believe it!? Princess Diana as a grandmother?!) was best known for.

    There could not be a greater contrast, energetically, than the King of Wands.

    The Lizard King – crazy, sexy, beast!

    Prince George is going to be pretty much un-ignorable!  With a larger than life personality that you can see blazing for miles and a powerful attractiveness that god far beyond looks – he’ll be a Rock Star King for the new Millennium!  Given that these Wandsy features are supposed to be his less than positive characteristics, this vital and passionate nature might materialise as pleasure-seeking, playboy behaviour.  Remember his Uncle Harry and that Nazi uniform gaffe? *shudders*   Remember his grandpa in his trunks on Bondi Beach back in the day? *shudders again*  Akshully, just checked out a picture of Prince Charles in his shorts on Bondi and he was, honestly, a bit buff.  Even if he doesn’t know what that means.

    Annnyway, back to The Little Prince…..

    The Queen of Cups is hugely creative and George will inspire people with his brilliant people skills and enthusiasm for the Arts. Oh yeah, he’s going to be a cultured dude!

    Prince George’s Minions.  I could not resist it because, yanno….MINIONS!!!

    We can only keep our fingers crossed that, despite his privileged position, his parents manage to bring him up in a normal family environment that will keep him Down With Da People and those marvellous Queen of Cups will be a positive asset!  His father, Prince William, was a sensitive child: Once, when he found his mother crying bitterly in a locked bathroom, he reportedly pushed paper hankies under the door for her.  THAT is the action of a kind heart.

    As a leader, I hope that George turns out to be someone who leads his minions from within (Queenly), rather than storming away out in front on his own (Kingly) without a care or thought for anyone else. Thoughtless behaviour or heartlessness are a couple of flaws that can be levelled at this little Prince if his King of Wands energies overwhelms his Queen of Cups.

    The Queen of Cups brings a significantly emotional dimension to George’s life. Hopefully this will seen as an asset and not a weakness or liability.  This is, after all, the Royal Family where nothing is stiffer than their upper lips.

    I think that although he might be quick to anger and easily made laugh (Wands), he’ll cry and forgive easily too (Cups) .  He’ll have a strong sense of duty (Wands and House of Windsor!) but hopefully have some of his late grand-mother’s empathy and sensitivity.

    George may turn out to be a sensitive young man completely in tune with people’s needs and able to relate to the man on he Clapham Omnibus as readily as he does to the Infantas of Spain.

    Now, whether or not this little bundle of cuteness turns out to be any sort of a King at all is all in the lap of the Gods – and possibly Mr Putin.  Whatever his future holds, I hope that he is a happy child; loved and loving.  Because that’s what matters 🙂

    You ever use your Tarot Court Cards to speculate about Little People and the personalities they might develop?

    Happy birthday, Prince George, you wee cutie!

  • How to interpret | The Page of Pentacles

    From my earlier post on Pages, we know that they can stand for:

    Small

    Minor (as in relatively unimportant)

    Playful

    Inexperienced

    Young

    Child at heart

    Curious

    Childish


    The suit of Pentacles is associated with (but not limited to):

    • Health
    • Wealth
    • Hearth
    • Physicality

    So when the Page of Pentacles arises in a reading, and he’s not appearing as a person, you can see hims as representing a combination of elements from the first list and second list. I call this sort of phrase-making ‘Pidgin Tarot‘ and the odd phrases can give us an idea as to what a Court is about.  Here are some examples for this little Page:

    Health Messenger – perhaps a lower back twinge that lets you know that you need to take better care of your self.   A reminder from the Health Centre to go for a check up.

    Minor Wealth – yeah, don’t be signing any contracts for that Lamborghini just yet…..

    Playful Hearth – perhaps buying that doggie-shaped door stop isn’t such a bad idea after all…..


    Young Physicality – youthful constitution……lucky beggar!



    Childish Wealth – not looking after one’s assets as diligently as one might hope? Lack of experience of caring for one’s finances?



    Young Wealth – That Equity Bond has got a few more years to run.


    Curious Home – how can I fix that ominous knocking sound from the boiler?!  How can I make the most of this space?

    Of course, some of these will not be right for your interpretation in a particular reading and each deck WILL have its own slant designed-in, but if you don’t have a LWB for your deck, these can help you approach the card with confidence.  And I have NO idea what is going on with the fonts changing in this blog post either 🙂

    If he arising in the reading as as a person….
    For me, this is someone who likes the slapstick physical humour of custard pies and comedy car chases, rather than the thrust and parry of dinner party repartee. This Page is practically-inclined rather than bookish; an apprentice rather than a university student. This is a slow and deliberate chap rather than an impulsive soul. She might be fond of games (but not necessarily running-about games nor team games). Curious about the natural world and how things work – mechanically minded and hands-on. This person is quiet, home-loving, happy to roll up her sleeves and get on with something.

    Winner:  The Page Most Likely To…..
    ……..Have Helped His Dog Deliver Her Puppies.

    Elemental composition:  Earth of Earth

    Reversed  –  read as Knight of Swords  (Air of Air – elemental opposite of Earth of Earth)

    This and more stuffs like it are in the e-book about Court Cards that I’m currently writing.